Let me introduce myself -

sue h

Posted 30 July 2011 - 12:46 AM

sue h

Newbie

New Member

2 posts

United States

I'm Sue Hawkins, and I Make Maps & Art !

artist’s statement

I grew up in Central New York but have been living in New York's Capital Region since 1986. I’ve been a professional cartographer since 1980 and made maps as a hobby since before then. This has informed my artwork ever since completing my Bachelor of Arts degree at SUNY Oswego in 1983.

I am primarily occupied with watercolor painting, photography, some impasto paintings and, most recently, digital imagery based upon maps and aerial photographs.

These digital images revolve around my concern for humanity’s long-term impact on the landscape. From re-routing rivers, overtaxing aquifers, to making visible long-abandoned tracts of land, humans leave long-lasting scars upon the landscape. Archaeologists use aerial photography to find sites that are invisible from the ground, because these scars may be visible for thousands of years.

By digitally altering the appearance and coloring of these aerial images, I intend to make the viewer take a fresh breath and ask herself, “Do people really leave this kind of a mark on the Earth?” and “What kind of mark do I leave on my planet?”

bio

I have been drawing, painting and making maps for my entire life. Most of that experience has been in the environmental field, with GIS added in since 1987. My greatest loves are cartography in its many forms, and illustration, and with every minute that is a changing field.

I have added web design to my bag of tricks, this since 1997.

Among the special areas I’ve worked in over the years: tax maps, wetland mapping, natural resource inventory maps, mapping for environmental engineering firms, mining and minerals departments and planning departments.

I have also done extensive research and procurement of historical aerial photography for environmental and legal purposes, as well as producing illustrations for meetings using aerial photos.

Most recently my work has been with retail map publishing and graphic design.